altar: [OE] The etymological notion underlying the word altar is that of sacrificial burning. Latin altar, which was borrowed directly into Old English, was a derivative of the plural noun altāria, ‘burnt offerings’, which probably came from the verb adolēre ‘burn up’. Adolēre in turn appears to be a derivative of olēre ‘smell’ (the connection being the smell made by combustion), which is related to English odour, olfactory, and redolent. (The traditional view that altar derives from Latin altus ‘high’ is no longer generally accepted, although no doubt it played a part, by association, in its development.) In Middle English, the Old French form auter replaced altar, but in the 16th century the Latin form re-established itself. => odour, olfactory, redolent
altar (n.)
Old English alter, altar, from Latin altare (plural altaria) "high altar, altar for sacrifice to the great gods," perhaps originally meaning "burnt offerings" (compare Latin adolere "to worship, to offer sacrifice, to honor by burning sacrifices to"), but influenced by Latin altus "high." In Middle English, often auter, from Old French auter. Reintroduced from Latin 1500s. As a symbol of marriage, by 1820.
实用例句
1. Matilda was embroidering an altar cloth covered with flowers and birds.
玛蒂尔达在一块有花鸟图案的祭坛布上刺绣。
来自柯林斯例句
2. The altar was flanked by two Christmas trees.
圣坛两侧是两棵圣诞树。
来自柯林斯例句
3. The vicar took a candlestick from the altar.
牧师从圣餐台上拿起一座烛台.
来自《简明英汉词典》
4. Pope John Paul II knelt in his white robes before the simple altar.
教皇约翰·保罗二世身着白色长袍在简朴的圣坛前面跪下来。
来自柯林斯例句
5. The coffin lying before the altar was bare, except for a single wreath of white roses.
